World Beard and Moustache Championships

The World Beard and Moustache Championships is a biennial competition hosted by the World Beard and Moustache Association (WBMA) in which men with beards and moustaches display lengthy, highly styled facial hair.

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Since 2004, the WBMA [1] has been the governing body for the championships. This association is fully responsible for awarding the contest to member clubs. Any club may apply for membership to the WBMA and applications to host an upcoming WBMC will be accepted from established clubs.

On September 1, 2007, competitors of the world's most hirsute faces from the UK, America, Germany and other countries convened for the championships in Brighton. It was hosted by The Handlebar Club with comedy performer Michael "Atters" Attree acting as Chairman and Master of Ceremonies. Facial hair categories were judged by celebrity moustache wearers including actor/singer Nick Cave and musician/poet Billy Childish. The international event was staged within the Brighton Centres Main Hall.[2] Categories include Dali moustache, goatee and full beard freestyle.[3][4]

The 2009 event was hosted by The South Central Alaska Beard and Moustache Club [2] from May 19 to the 24th in Anchorage, Alaska. SCAKBMC distributed over $16,000 to local charities via the International Lions Club 49A foundation 501C4 and the Miners & Trappers Ball Inc a 501C3 organizations. Anchorage hosted the most ever competitors, eclipsing the previous U.S. venue of Carson City, Nevada.

The 2011 championships were hosted by "The Norwegian Moustache Club of 91" [3] in Trondheim, Norway on May 15. The 12th incarnation of the contest was held near Stuttgart, Germany on November 2, 2013 and was hosted by Belle Moustache Beard and Culture Club. [4] The next official World Beard and Moustache Championships will be held in Leogang, Austria in 2015. The Championships return to America in 2017 when The Austin Facial Hair Club [5][6] hosts the contest in Austin, Texas. The official World Beard and Moustache Championships are held every two years, on odd years only.

There are 3 brackets of facial hair: Moustache, Partial Beard and Full Beard. Each bracket is broken into individual categories. There are usually 17 categories but there were 18 different categories for the 2009 championships.